


Wild

by TirNanOg89



Series: Past Is Prologue [3]
Category: NCIS, The Sentinel
Genre: AU, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-21
Updated: 2015-02-21
Packaged: 2018-03-14 09:13:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,869
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3405233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TirNanOg89/pseuds/TirNanOg89
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony and Gibbs have a surprise after a mission gone wrong.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Wild

Wild.

Chapter One

It was supposed to be a quick and easy case. He should have known better. There really was no such thing as quick and easy at NCIS. Director Sheppard had sent him on yet another ‘mission’, only this one was in the wilds of Blue Ridge Park, Maryland. It was unfortunate that the perps had been more on the ball than anticipated, though he really should have expected it from Marines. He had seen enough examples of Marine ingenuity from Gibbs, who was going to kill him for this screw-up. Fortunately he had noticed the tripwire as soon as he tripped it, shame it wasn’t before. Thanks to the rough terrain and night fall, as well as over four hours of running from lots of large men with big guns, he had fallen down an embankment and sprained his ankle. Luckily he had landed very near an overhang and been able to hide from the men who may have been smart enough to set perimeter wires but weren’t quite intelligent enough to look for overhangs. 

That was over a week ago and Tony was having serious problems. Not only did he no longer have a clue where he was due to the dash from the perps and the fall, he was also running out of food, getting more concerned about the local wild life and he was worried he was loosing his mind. Five days into his little forced vacation he had started hearing things. Now, his hearing had always been very good, as were his sight and sense of smell, but this was ridiculous. He was unbelievably glad it was the middle of summer as the day after that he had started itching enough to drive him almost insane, at least he hoped it was almost. 

By day seven he had been damn close to praying for death. He had spent two days in a nightmare of sensation. He would have sworn he heard a mouse fart at one point, he could smell the smoke from a fire, though he couldn’t see it, he could still taste the water he had drunk from the stream the day before and his clothes were so irritating he had to strip them off and deal with the ground instead. He hadn’t even been able to stomach the thought of drinking the water. He thanked every deity he could think of that ‘that’ had stopped when it had. 

Since he had stopped praying for death he had redoubled his efforts at praying for Gibbs to find him. He knew he was verging on obsessive but the need for the older mans presence was a physical ache throughout his body and mind. It was the ninth day and he could feel his clothes starting to irritate his skin again. His eyes and ears were already hurting from the over-stimulation and he was waiting fatalistically for his taste buds to start complaining. 

He heard a low rustling noise start up behind him and turned immediately only to realise it could have come from miles away at the rate his senses were working. He concentrated for a moment and heard dogs sniffing and smiled, at last, someone was using the sniffer dogs. He concentrated for a while longer and heard footsteps. After ten minutes or so he could hear at least a couple of dozen different sets of footsteps and several people talking, then he heard it. Gibbs was coming for him at last. He zeroed in on Gibbs footsteps then realised he could hear his heartbeat, even though the other noises of the search party were becoming overwhelming. So Tony concentrated on Gibbs, his footsteps, his heartbeat and the fact that they were getting closer. In the back of his mind a small analytical voice mentioned that it was strange, how he could hear Gibbs but everything else had gone silent, he could hear, see and feel nothing but Gibbs. He was sure he should have found this strange but he couldn’t be bothered. Gibbs was here and he would deal with everything, all Tony had to do was wait a little longer and this nightmare would be over. Little did he know it was just beginning.

*****************

The shout went up about four hours into the search. Gibbs was already livid before the search began. He had been told eight days before that his lead agent had been ‘commandeered’ for a ‘special’ task, after the fact! He was not pleased and let Jen know it. He had never been shy with his opinions, especially when it came to his people. Each day Tony wasn’t at his desk in the morning he got a little madder and a little more worried, not that he would admit it even on pain of death. Then, Jenny finally admitted that Tony should have called in everyday and hadn’t, not only that but the entire job shouldn’t have taken any more than three days. This came after seven days of no contact. Gibbs was livid, infuriated, seething with blind anger and had to put it to the back of his mind so he could actually do something useful and find Tony.

The dogs had started baying and he knew they had found Tony, then the call for the paramedics had gone up and his heart had plummeted. Tony had to be in a bad way for that near panicked tone in the dog handlers’ voice. He made his way over to them as fast as he could, beating the medics and the rest of his team, to find Tony leaning against the embankment under an overhang. It was a smart place to hide, he had some shelter from the elements, though it had been fair since he had disappeared, and he was heard to find without the aid of dogs.

The problem was, he was staring out at nothing. Tony had a completely vacant look in his eyes and seemed to be a million miles away. He hadn’t reacted at all when the medic shook his shoulder and Gibbs worry was going off the scale. 

“What’s wrong with him?”

Gibbs knew he sounded pissy, but he was, and he really didn’t care what the medic thought. As soon as he spoke Tony’s eyes shone with an almost visible spark. There was no other sign of recognition or even life, but everyone who knew Tony soon realised that as soon as Gibbs spoke he came a little closer to alive. 

“I don’t know Sir, it’s almost like he’s in a trance of some kind, maybe he hit his head in a fall or something.”

Gibbs snorted his opinion of that and turned his back on the medic. 

“McGee, get Ducky here NOW! I want Tony back at head quarters yesterday!”

“I’m right here Jethro. I’ll take him back now. I would appreciate it if you could come with me; Anthony seems to appreciate your presence. Timothy and Ziva can process the scene without you.”

Ducky, as always, knew exactly what to say and how to say it to calm Gibbs and get the job done. Gibbs nodded and turned to his team.

“ With the amount of searchers here there’s little point in covering his tracks so process this area and get your asses back to me ASAP. I’ll take his clothes for Abby, I want samples of everything, the soil, water, vegetation, everything!”

With that he turned to Ducky who already had Tony on the stretcher and two burly medics carrying him back to the road for transport home. He nodded at the older man and they quickly caught up with the medics taking their boy home.

****************** 

It didn’t take as long to get Tony home as it had to find him in the first place. They were soon in autopsy and in deference to his unusually alive patient Ducky had placed towels on the steel table for warmth and comfort. Neither man could find a reason for Tony’s continued trance and they were both frustrated. Eventually Gibbs normally well hidden tactile nature came to the fore and he could no longer resist smoothing Tony’s hair off his forehead.

He did not expect any reaction, let alone the one he got. Tony’s eyes flickered with life as they had every time Gibbs spoke but the spark stayed. 

“Come on Tony, come back to me, break’s over, it’s time to get back to work.”

Ducky noted Gibbs use of the first person and internally cheered at it. Tony meanwhile was finally waking up.

**************** 

He had been stuck in this dark and cold place, hearing Gibbs voice intermittently, though he couldn’t recognise the words, and revelling in that and the constant sound of his heartbeat. Then he found himself in near ecstasy as Gibbs touched him. He couldn’t believe his luck or help shifting and groaning as he found Gibbs was talking and TOUCHING him! All at the same time! That combination of touch and sound broke whatever barrier was holding him back and after that first subtle shift he couldn’t help moving as close to Gibbs as possible. He still couldn’t manage to think and wasn’t sure where he was or what Gibbs was saying but he knew he had to get closer, and now!

**************** 

Gibbs and Ducky shared a look that spoke a thousand words at Tony’s first shift and were both stunned at his reaction to the words spoken afterwards. Ducky had to scramble to help Gibbs as Tony threw himself at him, almost taking himself right off the table. They managed to get him somewhat on the table but neither of them could pry him off of Gibbs. Tony had attached his arms to Gibbs neck and would not let go. They realised that he was muttering but it took them a while to understand what he was saying.

“Hide. Hide. Gotta hide. Stay hidden. Just wait for Gibbs. Won’t be long. Just wait. Safe then. Gibbs safe. Just wait. Gibbs safe. Gibbs safe. Gibbs safe.”

The two men were stunned at the rambling but they both realised that Gibbs voice and touch was having a good affect on Tony so he carried on stroking his hair while calmly talking to him. 

“Come on then Tony, time to wake up. We got work to do here; I need to know who you saw there and where you found them. We got another case to move on too soon, can’t wait forever.”

Normally Gibbs would have just smacked the back of his head and told him to get on with it but he knew it wouldn’t work this time, he didn’t know how he knew, he just did and he always went with his gut. It didn’t take Tony long to calm down and start coming back to himself but he was shuddering and shaking his head, his face screwed up in obvious pain. Gibbs, for once in his life, didn’t have the first clue what to do next. How the hell could he help Tony when he didn’t know what was wrong? He looked to Ducky, his normal font of all knowledge, but he had a clueless expression as well. 

Suddenly Ducky’s eyes widened in a ‘eureka’ moment and he grinned. He quickly walked to the light switch and turned off all the overhead lights. Tony immediately looked better and his shuddering slowed to a more controllable level. Gibbs grinned at him and raised a brow in question. 

“A few years ago I heard rumours that a student in Cascade had started a thesis on Sentinels, men with enhanced senses, a throw-back to a by-gone era when watch men were needed to protect tribes from outside threats. Now, last year there was a big hullabaloo when the young mans thesis was leaked to the press and he later held a press conference admitting to having faked all the evidence backing up his thesis. 

“Now some believe it was a prank gone horribly wrong, others believe he was trying to pull a fast one on the university of Rainier, but, a few, myself included, believe he disavowed his research to protect his subject. He must have known the subject very well to document all the facts that he did and so there was very little doubt in most people’s minds that the ‘sentinel’ in question was the officer he was partnered with under the pretext of a study on police culture, one Detective Ellison. If I am in fact correct, then I think we should contact these two men immediately if not sooner, because I think our boy is a Sentinel.”

Gibbs face was a blank mask but Ducky knew he was gob smacked. He quickly processed the information and for a man that hated computers, his brain really did work like one, only faster most of the time. Gibbs remembered the whole fiasco being on the news and hearing all about sentinels and their guides and started assessing the facts he knew. Tony’s senses were obviously going haywire. His touch and voice calmed the younger man. The lowered lights helped enormously. There really was no choice but to get in touch with this Ellison and get his help. Gibbs refused to even consider that the other man might not be willing, he would knock him out and drag him in if necessary, he would get Tony all the help he needed. Even more so than usual, failure was not an option. 

Gibbs looked back at Ducky after checking a now quiet but still hinky Tony.

“Right, from what I remember Ellison was an Army Ranger, get Abby on the phone and find him. I want him here an hour ago, and Sandburg was the author, get him as well, if we’re right they’ll probably come as a package deal anyway.”

Ducky nodded and called Abby. After reassuring her that Tony was with them and improving, he gave her the names and warned her that Gibbs wanted them there in person an hour ago. She new what Gibbs was like with Tony, though they never discussed it, and had their details in moments. She decided to call them herself instead of waiting for Tim or Ziva to reappear as she was as anxious as Gibbs to get help for Tony, though she wasn’t entirely sure what an ex Army Ranger and a student could do to help. 

“Major Crimes, how can I help you?”

The voice on the other end of the line was professional without being cold and Abby immediately liked the man. 

“Hi, I’m Abby Sciuto with NCIS forensics lab and I need to talk to Detective Ellison please.”

“Speaking, what can I do for NCIS Miss Sciuto”?

“OH! Great! I can’t believe I got you right off, it’s karma, it must be, cause Tony needs you or Gibbs thinks he does which means he must cause Gibbs is never wrong, well his taste in women sucks and his marriage record is awful but other than that he’s never wrong and so we need you so you have to come and Gibbs said an hour ago and that was ten minutes ago cause I had to find you then ring you and talk to you so you have to get here really fast cause that was OVER an hour ago now and we need you cause Tony needs you and we only just found him and Gibbs is all ‘Grrr!’ and everything so it must be really important so can you come? And your friend Sandburg?”

There was a pause on the other end of the line and Abby couldn’t handle the suspense.

“Can you come? Do you mean you can’t come cause we need you and Gibbs’ll get even more ‘Grrr’ and then he’ll start shouting cause he’s worried about Tony, not that he would admit it but he is, and we really need you.”

Ellison cut her off before she could get any further.

“Whoa! Calm down and breath, then tell me ‘slowly’ what is wrong and why this Gibbs thinks he needs Sandburg and me. Slowly.”

“Ok, well Tony was all James Bond with the covert opps thing only he must have been spotted, cause he ran and we didn’t know he was missing till today cause the Director told us he was working for her like he does sometimes since Gibbs left but he carried on when Gibbs came back and Gibbs really hates that cause she doesn’t tell him what’s going on and Tony can’t cause she told him not to and she’s the Director so he can’t ignore her like he does most, but we found him today out in Blue Ridge park and he was hurt but not too bad but he was all hinky and spacey and Tim said he got kinda less hinky when Gibbs spoke but he was still all spacey and we didn’t know what was wrong with him but Ducky called up from autopsy and said we need you and Sandburg so we need you here and now we’ve been talking for ages and Gibbs wanted you here an hour ago and now its an hour and almost a half ago and I don’t think you can really do that but we need you here quick.” 

There was a slight chuckle from Ellison but he soon sobered.

“Miss Sciuto.”

“Abby.”

“Right, Call me Jim. Abby, can I talk to this Gibbs? Or maybe even Ducky?”

“Oh! Yes! I can do that, just a sec!”

Abby called down to autopsy after putting Ellison on hold and got Ducky.

“Ducky! Jim wants to talk to you or Gibbs.”

“Who?”

“Jim, Detective Ellison, he’s on line two, can you talk to him?”

“Certainly Abby, I’ll talk to you soon, goodbye.”

Ducky looked at Gibbs and put the phone on speaker as he switched to line two.

“Mr Ellison?”

“Here, who am I speaking to?”

“Oh, my apologies, I’m Ducky, but Gibbs is here and we have you on speaker.”

“Right, Abby said you wanted me there for someone named Tony who you only found today and was all ‘hinky’, why did you call here and what do you think we can do to help?”

“Ah, this isn’t something I think you would like to discus on the phone. Suffice to say, due to past events we think you and Mr Sandburg might be just the people we need to help Anthony in this sensitive period, as you may well have been through something similar yourself not too long ago.”

Ellison was quiet for a moment, obviously thinking out what Ducky had just said. Gibbs was a moment off of yelling at the man to just get his ass to DC when he finally spoke.

“Ok, Ducky. If nothing else you got me curious. I take it you want to meet at a hotel or something similar?”

Both men could hear the obvious suspicion in Ellison’s voice and neither could fault him. In the same situation they would also have though it was probably a trap. Gibbs finally spoke.

“You can meet us at a hotel, motel, the side of the god damn road or my place if you want, but I was gonna ask you to come straight to autopsy cause that’s where Tony is and I don’t wanna move him unless we have to. You can bring a S.W.A.T. team or a battalion of Rangers with you if you like just as long as you get your ass here yesterday and fix DiNozzo!”

“Jethro! Calm down, you’re agitating Anthony. And wipe that scowl off your face too. It has no affect on me, I know you too well. Mr Ellison, my apologies but Jethro is quite rightly worried for our Anthony. We don’t mind what arrangement you would like to make and I’m sure the Director can officially request your presence here on some pretexts but we really do need you sooner rather than later as any delay could cause unknown damage, unknown to our selves at least.”

Ellison paused once more then sighed.

“Right, get your Director to work it officially with Captain Banks and I’ll get Sandburg and myself on the first flight out, ok? We should have confirmation of the official story by the time we land. Will that suit you?”

Gibbs huffed and Ducky grinned at him.

“That would be wonderful Detective. We can’t thank you enough for your help in this most trying time. If you fax us your flight plan when you have it finalised we can have you picked up at the airport, if you would like, or if you prefer we can arrange for a car to be ready for you.”

“Don’t take this the wrong way Ducky, but I’d prefer to arrange it myself. We’ll see when we get there, and you should start praying if this isn’t exactly what you’ve implied it is.”

Ellison’s voice was near glacial at that point and neither man could blame him. Ducky cut in before Gibbs could start.

“Very well Mr Ellison. Thank you for going this far for us. We will see you when you get here. Goodbye.”

The phone went dead as Ellison obviously put the phone down and Ducky sighed in relief while Gibbs just growled again. This had the unfortunate side-affect of making Tony whimper and Gibbs immediately quieted and calmed himself. He started stroking Tony’s hair again and could have sworn he heard him purr! Now that there was nothing else to do Gibbs finally ‘really’ took note of Tony’s condition and it sunk in that he was naked all but for his underwear. It surprised him that he hadn’t noticed it before, of course he had ‘noted’ but he hadn’t really ‘noticed’. That Tony was not only hanging off his neck, but also hanging off his neck ‘naked’ was a bit of an eye opener to say the least. Gibbs knew he didn’t dare look at Ducky. He wasn’t sure if he would blush or giggle like a schoolgirl but neither was acceptable so he just didn’t chance it. He knew Ducky was looking at him of course, but that changed nothing as long as he didn’t look back.

Eventually, what seemed like hours of silence later to Gibbs, Tony’s breathing evened out and Gibbs knew he was asleep. A look at Ducky for assistance and they soon had him lying back on the table, but as soon as Gibbs tried to move away he started whimpering again and he just couldn’t stand to cause him pain intentionally so he continued to stroke his hair. 

McGee and Ziva eventually joined them and one look at Gibbs was enough to stop any possible comments on Tony’s behaviour or state of undress, let alone Gibbs behaviour. McGee, being a smart man, had bought Gibbs an extra large coffee and drinks for everyone else. Gibbs gave a brief nod of his head in acknowledgement and proceeded to ignore them both. 

McGee looked over at Ziva, trying to encourage her to give their report to Gibbs so he wouldn’t have to but she blithely ignored him. He finally gave in and spoke.

“Ah, Boss. We took all the samples and gave them to Abby, she said she would have the first results for you within the hour.”

Gibbs grunted in response, full attention still on Tony.

“Right, well we’ll just go up and look into the area and see what we can get from the Director in the way of names.”

Gibbs grunted again and McGee knew he had said the right thing. He glared at Ziva for the lack of back up and nodded to Ducky before leaving the room, soon followed by a slightly chastised Ziva. Ducky grinned over at Gibbs once he knew they were out of earshot. 

“He really is growing up isn’t he? Our Timothy will certainly make a fine agent if he continues like this. I heard that he had a little run in with the ‘Sec-Nav’ when Anthony was on the White case, quite an accomplishment for the lad.”

Gibbs stopped himself before he could snort again, he thought he had been doing too much of that lately. 

“Yeah Ducky, he’ll get there eventually. Wont take him long now, Tony and Ziva keep him on his toes and he’s learnt more from them already than he realises. I just hope he can stay the same good man while he learns that others aren’t always nice.”

“Why Jethro, how erudite of you!”

“Ah, stuff it Duck. You know what I mean. Ziva already knew the score before she got here and Tony is about as jaded as you can get and still be so damned naive about some things. But McGee, him I worried about, until lately. Now he’s growing up, he’s gonna be fine.”

“Indeed, Jethro, indeed. However, right now I am more worried about our Anthony than young Timothy. How much longer do you think the Detective and his friend might be?”

“Since they haven’t contacted us with any details it could be that they haven’t got a flight yet, or maybe they’re just as paranoid as me and will turn up out of the blue to make sure they have witnesses to being in the building if anything goes wrong, and make sure that we are legitimately from NCIS. If that’s the way it goes, which I think it will, it will take about eight hours for the flight plus an hour to get ready, book and get to the airport, then another hour to get off the plane and to us so a ten hour journey all in. we spoke to Ellison about three hours ago so that leaves us seven hours to worry in.”*

Ducky humphed and didn’t look pleased.

“And what are we to do with Anthony in that time? There is no point in taking him home only to have to bring him back, we don’t know how the sound of the engine is going to affect him but I can’t see it being anything good for him in this state. He can’t stay here if I have a client come in. maybe we can take him up to the back room of Abigail’s lab.” 

Gibbs nodded. He did not want to risk putting Tony in a car after his reaction to loud noise so far. He was a little worried about trying to get Tony up to Abby's lab but neither office was far from the elevator so it shouldn’t be too hard to move him without anyone seeing. The first thing they had to do, however, was get Tony some clothes. 

“Right, call McGee and tell him to get his ass down here with the spare clothes Tony keeps in the filing cabinet. Then call Abbs and let her know we’re on our way.”

Ducky knew better than to mention Gibbs lack of manners at such a time so just got on with the calls. Within ten minutes McGee was back in autopsy with Tony’s clothes and Gibbs realised how hard it was going to be to get Tony dressed without letting go of him. Or rather getting Tony to let go of him. Eventually Ducky took over and with McGee’s help had Tony’s trousers on then slowly, and glad there was a reasonably loose t-shirt available, slid the shirt over his head and arms. It certainly wasn’t perfect but he was covered. They soon realised it wouldn’t last long as Tony was getting very agitated already. Ducky took the lead making sure there was nobody around as Gibbs and McGee each put one of Tony’s arms around their neck and carried/dragged him to the elevator. Tony was obviously not happy or comfortable with this situation. Though he still didn’t wake up he was leaning towards Gibbs and struggling to get away from McGee. Gibbs could see on the younger mans face that he was not only struggling to keep Tony upright but also hurt by the perceived rebuff. He sighed to himself before taking the plunge in the deep and treacherous ocean of ‘emotion’.

“He has no idea what he’s doing McGee, if he was awake and knew it was you, you know he would trust you. He knows you have his six.”

McGee looked stunned for a moment then stuttered for a moment before finally getting his thanks out.

“Thanks Boss. I just don’t know why he reacts so well to you and not me or Ducky. I mean it’s not like you’re nice to him, not that you hate him or mistreat him in any way, though you smack his head often enough but you don’t mean it, at least not like that, well you do mean it like that but not in a nasty way more of a…I think I’ll shut up now.”

“Good idea McGee.”

Gibbs was glaring at him but Ducky was unsuccessfully trying to hide a grin. It was amazing how fast Timothy could dig himself into a hole. The elevator finally got to Abby’s floor and Ducky stuck his head out of the door to check the way.

“All clear chaps, lets get going then.”

They soon had Tony in the back room and sat on a chair leaning against Gibbs. Abby grabbed McGee and got him to help her drag her futon in. They set it up in the darkest corner and Gibbs realised just how worried Abby was for Tony. Not only was she bouncing around in agitation but she had also turned her music off. Not that she didn’t have good reason. Tony was whimpering again and shifting around like his skin was on fire that, by the rash they could see above his collar, was probably not so far from the truth. Gibbs sent the others out, not without argument from Abby, as soon as McGee helped him lay Tony down, then started stripping his clothes off. Usually he would have been quite happy to strip Tony’s clothes off but the circumstances were really putting a dampener on his libido.

Unfortunately Tony still wouldn’t let him go so he was stuck there with a naked Tony and nothing to do. He sat there running his fingers through his hair and watching him while he slept. Before he realised it he had been there for four hours just watching and touching Tony. Ducky tapped lightly on the door and carefully walked in. 

“Timothy and Ziva finally got something out of the Director. Anthony was sent on a reconnaissance mission. He was watching a Lieutenant Murray who has apparently been selling weapons to the highest bidder. Fortunately he wasn’t there when Anthony set off the trip wire he had set up; unfortunately he had already set up the trip wire. The information Anthony had already sent back via satellite was enough to put all involved away for quite some time, especially after some of his cohorts began singing like canaries once in a room with Ziva. I told her to carry on, as I didn’t think you would want to be disturbed and you obviously couldn’t leave Anthony. Mr Ellison should be here in around three hours if we are lucky. I have sent Timothy and Abby to get some food, as you will likely need it. I told them to get something bland in case the smell bothered Anthony, I didn’t think you would mind for one meal.”

“Don’t worry Duck, it’s not a problem. Not sure I could eat anyway, don’t feel hungry.”

Ducky gave him a long assessing look.

“Hum, yes well, you will eat regardless. Anthony will need you to keep your strength up, going hungry will not help him.”

Gibbs was normally the one giving orders and rarely took them from anyone, but he knew better than to argue with Ducky on something like this. He nodded and turned back to Tony wondering when he would wake up. Before long the food arrived and it didn’t take long for it to disappear again. Tony had finally settled down with the sheet under him so Gibbs took the chance of putting one over him too. When he didn’t get any negative reaction he settled back himself for a moment before deciding he might as well put some clothes on Tony before their guests arrived. He was about to call Ducky when the man tapped on the door and walked in.

“Jethro, Abby thought Tony could do with some more comfortable clothing and bought some while they were collecting diner. They should be ok, they are loose and as soft as she could find.”

Gibbs grinned up at him.

“That girl is one of a kind Ducky. Can you give me a hand getting it on him?”

Ducky grinned in return and nodded, walking over to help. They quietly got Tony dressed in the softest, plain blue, pyjamas Gibbs had ever seen let alone felt. They felt like the plushy bears he had seen recently and for a brief moment of self-indulgence he considered buying a pair for himself, not that he would ever admit to that, even on pain of death.

Finally settled, Gibbs closed his eyes when Ducky left the room and just listened to Tony breath. What felt like moments later he woke with a start as Tony jumped out of the bed growling, and stood in front of him in an unmistakably defensive reaction to something Gibbs could not sense. It didn’t take him long to figure it out though. Once more Ducky tapped on the door and poked his head around the frame.

“Jethro, Mr Ellison is here…oh my, well at least you are awake Anthony.”

Tony barely even flicked his eyes towards the older man, staring intently out the window to where Ducky knew Ellison was stood. Gibbs stood up and slowly walked towards the door only to be stopped and pushed back by Tony. Gibbs, as usual, reacted instead of thinking about what he was doing.

“DiNozzo! What the hell are you doing? Get your ass over here right NOW!”

Tony shuddered and shook his head as if clearing it. 

“Boss?”

Ducky smiled and turned back to their guests while Gibbs dealt with Tony.

“Mr Ellison, Mr Sandburg. Thank you so much for joining us so promptly and on such faith. Jethro will be out shortly with Anthony, he seems to have just woken up.”

Sandburg smiled at him.

“Yeah, right as Jim and I walked in I’ll bet. A typical Sentinel reaction to a perceived threat. Though I’m surprised the shouting worked, I could never get through to Jim like that.”

Ellison looked at him incredulously. 

“Chief, Gibbs is senior agent, DiNozzo is used to taking orders not giving them. Though that was still pretty impressive for a newbie.”

They waited in silence for a while until Gibbs and Tony came out.

In the back room things were not going so easily as Ellison seemed to think. Gibbs glared at Tony who glared right back. 

“I am walking out there and you will damn well follow me and behave like the rational, well trained agent you are DiNozzo.”

“Not gonna happen.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean DiNozzo?”

“There is no way in hell you are going out there before me. I don’t know who the hell he is, or why the hell he’s here for that matter, but there is no way you go out there unprotected. It’s bad enough I don’t have a weapon, at least they wont have one either if the guys at the front are doing their job right. And if not I’ll teach them how to do better latter, once this bozo’s gone.”

“DiNozzo, do you think I've suddenly gone senile or something? Do I look like I need you guarding over me like some mutt with a new bone? Do I need to remind you I can still kick your ass seven ways from Sunday?”

“’Course you could, I would never fight you. Him on the other hand I will take apart if he looks at you wrong.”

Gibbs could only stand there stunned for a moment, letting the implications of that sink in. Had Tony really been holding back so much in their bouts? He knew damn well he always pulled his punches and fell a little too easily but even considering the differences in their age and experience he thought they were pretty evenly balanced. That really made him stop and think for a moment and he wasn’t sure he wanted to know who would really win in an all out, smack down fight and hoped he never found out. However, the point was, this was still his team and he lead from the front, not the rear, and he couldn’t set the precedent of allowing Tony to lead.

“You know I don’t do compromise Tony. I will walk out there First! But I will have my weapon drawn and you will be right behind me. Got it?”

Tony looked rebellious at first but relaxed slightly when he mentioned the gun. He eventually nodded and stood aside to let his boss through, walking bare millimetres behind him as he exited the room. He really tried to behave and do as he was told, and later rationalised that he had actually done as he was told, as he had only been told to stay behind Gibbs going through the door. Gibbs was still not impressed when Tony moved right in front of him, blocking any possible attack from the strangers, as soon as they were through the door and started growling again. He showed his displeasure by smacking him around the head. For once, none of the rest of the team made comment on it, realising how close they were to a major problem.

“DiNozzo! Stand down Now!”

Tony, for the first time since he had joined his team, ignored a direct order that didn’t involve a bomb and stayed right where he was glaring at Ellison.

“He really is nice, he’s just a little hinky since we got him back is all, you’ll love him when you get to know him, really!”

Abby’s outburst was enough to get the attention of everyone except the two Sentinels. Which was unfortunate as they were the ones she was trying to distract. Sandburg smiled at her.

“Don’t worry about it, it’s a Sentinel thing, Jim wont hurt him.”

The others in the room snorted at that and Blair was about to reassure them when Ducky spoke up.

“I do believe Abigail, like the rest of us, was more worried about Anthony hurting Mr Ellison and the two of you withdrawing your expert help in this matter.”**

Blair was stunned for a moment then really looked at the two Sentinels. What he saw was not encouraging. Tony was about the same size and weight as Jim but he had the advantage of youth and passion as he would be protecting his territory. He nodded slowly and spoke quietly to Jim.

“Jim, man, back down here ok? He’s confused and probably scared, he doesn’t need you up in his face man. Just back down for me ok? Jim?”

Jim finally took his eyes off of Tony and looked at Blair frowning. He knew that by turning his gaze away first he was implying Tony’s superiority and didn’t like it one bit but Blair rarely asked him to do something without a reason, so he waited for it.

“Don’t glare at me man, just cut the kid some slack ok? He just woke up, maybe he’s not a morning person?”

Jim couldn’t help but grin at that, only Blair could come out with something like that in this situation. Or maybe not.

“Yeah, since Gibbs left he’s been a real coffee addict and he hasn’t had any in like ages! Well over a week! Tim, go get some coffee, yeah, that’s what we need, and a Caff-Pow for me too please.”

And so Abby broke the tension and shoved McGee out of the room. McGee actually looked relieved about that, it was the perfect opportunity to escape the tension. Ziva decided this was a perfect idea and went with him, muttering about him needing help carrying it all. Once they had left Gibbs saw that Tony had still to take his eyes off of Ellison and knew they had to do something to break the tension. He looked over at Abby as the best co-conspirator and signed to her.

(Abby, can you get yourself and Duck behind us? Try to get Ellison behind Sandburg too if you can, we have to break this tension or Tony’s going to bust something.)

Abby nodded he agreement and surprisingly Blair signed back at them both.

(Not a bad idea and I can deal with Jim. Give me a moment.)

They both nodded at him and Abby slowly made her way to Ducky, taking his arm and leading him behind Tony and Gibbs. She didn’t try to hide what she was doing from Tony as it would have been pointless and she wanted him to know they were safe behind him anyway. As soon as they were ‘safe’ Tony immediately relaxed a fraction. He was still tense but not quite so much. 

Blair put his hand on Jims shoulder and got his attention, nodding his head behind him as he moved in front of him. Jim knew what Blair was doing and decided to go with it for now. If anything happened he was still within arms reach so he could give the kid some slack. 

Once Blair was in front of Jim Tony relaxed further and Gibbs took the opportunity to move himself. He put his hand on the small of Tony’s back to get his attention and when he knew he had it, he moved up next to him, never removing his hand from where it was rubbing small circles on his back. 

“So, Sandburg, I take it they both have the same problem then? Sight, sound, taste, touch and hearing off the scales. Only just got him in clothes a couple of hours ago, first time he’s been in proper lighting without loosing it too.”

Blair nodded with a slight grin.

“Yes. I have a great book you get to read.”

“Not me, Ducky and Abbs can read it, they deal with this kind of crap better than I do.”

Blair expected Tony to shy away or at least cringe at the perceived abandonment of his Guide but there was no reaction. At first he though maybe Tony had zoned but realised that he just wasn’t bothered in the slightest by the comment.

“You have to Gibbs because you’re his guide. At least I thought you were after that display, but by the lack of reaction to that comment I’m not sure.”

“What ‘comment’ exactly are you referring to Mr Sandburg?”

Duck asked in confusion, everyone else looking at Blair and waiting for a reply.

“Well, he may as well have just told Tony he didn’t want him at all, if I had said something like that at the beginning Jim would have pitched a fit. You are a Guide for life man you don’t get to choose. You just are, the sooner you accept that the better off you’ll both be, you’re gonna screw him up good like that.”

Gibbs almost smiled at that, and couldn’t hold it back as Abby started spluttering in his defence and Tony growled again before taking a step forward. Unfortunately that wiped the smile off his face as Jim took it as the threat it was and got just as defensive as Tony was. He decided it was time to take charge of this situation before it got any further out of hand. He used the hand still resting on Tony’s back to grab his trousers and drag him back a step while he stepped forward.

“Enough! I will not take this crap in my territory! I don’t give a shit which of you has the biggest balls, I’ll break both of you if you take one more step.”

Jim did NOT like that attitude at all but he saw just how serious he was, and the gun still in his hand, and decided that discretion really was the better part of valour. Blair snorted at all the grandstanding and shook his head signing to Abby while Gibbs was busy glaring at the two Sentinels.

(Wow, I never knew you could get this much testosterone in a room at once without suffocating!)

Abby tried valiantly to stifle her giggles but nervousness on top of the funny and she couldn’t help it. Gibbs glared at her for it but it was worth it to see the slight grin on Tony’s face as he looked at her quickly before going back to glaring at Jim. Gibbs took that opportunity to smack him upside the head.

“Ow! What was that for Boss?”

“I said enough, not glare at him some more. You are switching to de-café if this is the reaction you have to withdrawal. I thought Abbs was kidding when she said you turned into me when I left, I should know better than to ignore anything she says.”

“Yes, you should. And I say we need food. Tony still hasn’t eaten and you didn’t have a lot earlier either, and I dare say Jim and Blair could eat too after a flight like that.”

Abby knew when she was onto a winner. After saying something like that Gibbs couldn’t really ignore her suggestion and she knew they really did need to eat. She was still worried about Tony and she would feel better when he had at least eaten something and had a coffee in him. It turned out that McGee had perfect timing as he walked in through the door trailed by an obviously reluctant Ziva with drinks all round. This did not go over well with Tony though as this put both of them on the opposite side of Jim and Blair from the rest of the team. He immediately tensed up and snapped at them. Luckily McGee was quick enough to obey him anyway and Ziva was smart enough to know when to push.

“McGee, David, over here NOW!”

What Gibbs had not considered was that at this threat Tony decided he should be armed, so he took the gun right out of his hand. It was a sign of his trust for DiNozzo that he let him take it without even thinking about it. If anyone else had tried it he would have broken something before they got within an \inch of it much less took it. Ellison did not appreciate this development at all. He had an unknown Sentinel, who was obviously aggressive, stood in front of him with a weapon and Blair was between them. He was in front of Blair faster than it took to think it and growled at Tony. This, as is often the case, exacerbated the situation.

“DiNozzo! What the hell do you think you are doing with MY weapon?”

“Jim, chill man, he’s just watching out for his people, you’d do the same for Simon and Rafe and the others man.”

Jim and Tony both ignored them so Gibbs got proactive. He knew damn well that regardless of who was better, stronger or faster Tony would never chance hurting him. He had no such compunction. It took less than three seconds to have Tony pinned to the floor beneath him and the gun thrown to Ducky who caught it handily and held it casually at his side. Tony looked up at him and sighed in what he could have sworn was pleasure. Tony was flat on his back, arms held above his head, Gibbs straddling his waist and leaning forward to hold his arms, not many inches above his face. Gibbs knelt there for a moment gathering himself, just staring into Tony’s eyes and he knew, just knew, that this was the start of something more than just the Sentinel crap, this was something a damn sight more personal to both of them.

McGee, not knowing what the hell was going on, cleared his throat and looked to Ducky for guidance since Gibbs and Tony were otherwise engaged. Ducky smiled at him and moved over to take his coffee and thank him for fetching it. As soon as Ducky moved Tony tensed and followed his every move. As he was moving closer nor further away he soon relaxed but Gibbs knew he was going to pitch a fit as soon as someone tried to give Ellison and Sandburg their drinks. With this in mind he searched for a solution and hit on the perfect way to keep Tony still on the floor beneath him, of course, it didn’t hurt that Tony was beneath him and very nicely too. Gibbs looked up at McGee as he sat up and settled himself right over Tony’s crotch, reaching for his coffee. Tony knew exactly what the consequences of spilling his coffee would be and wouldn’t dare move as long as he was holding it. He took possession of Tony’s coffee as well, just for good measure.

Ducky obviously realised what he was doing as he nodded his agreement to the plan then asked Ziva, as the least vulnerable of their group in Tony’s eyes, to take the last two drinks and give them to Blair. There was no need to push Tony more than necessary after all. As expected Tony tensed as soon as Ziva moved towards Blair and Gibbs could feel him vibrating with the tension and control it took him not to jump up and rip someone apart. Gibbs wasn’t sure what it was that made him do it, but as soon as everyone’s eyes were on Ziva he shifted his weight and rubbed his ass right over Tony’s crotch. Tony immediately froze so he sat still again, just letting him wonder if he had done it on purpose. He wasn’t sure if he should laugh at himself and the stunned, almost hopeful, look on Tony’s face or run as fast as he could away from Tony and the situation he now found himself in.

Gibbs took a sip of his coffee, stalling for time, while he thought for a moment. By then Ziva had reached Blair and was handing the coffees over and Tony tensed again so Gibbs shifted once more and rubbed a little slower, down over his crotch and back up again. That time Tony knew it was no accident. He took a moment to get the idea straight (pun totally intended) in his mind and realise it would take a lot more than a moment. Gibbs was not only sat on him pinning him to the ground, he was also using sexual contact as a distraction. Tony couldn’t claim that he had never thought of Gibbs and sex in the same sentence, he wasn’t blind and he wasn’t 100% straight either, he never saw the point of limiting himself to only half the population. He had never though for one moment that Gibbs might be interested though. The man had three ex wives for crying out loud! And he was a Marine. Not exactly the poster boy for Gay Pride. Then, he supposed he didn’t exactly come off as bi at work either, he had learnt years before that when it came to the force it did not pay to be open minded, and had immediately assumed it would be the same in a government agency working with the Navy and Marines. 

After the incident with Vos he had started to wonder if he might be alright telling everyone that it was the fact that Vos was a murderer, not a male, that had turned his stomach. Just knowing that he/she had killed Pachie was near enough to make him throw up immediately. Right now, however, it was all he could do to stop himself from returning the favour and rubbing himself all over Gibbs, preferably followed by pounding or being pounded into the mattress or any other surface really. This did have the effect Gibbs was going for though, Tony was stock-still and completely ignoring everyone else in the room. Most of the others were ignoring him too, only Ellison was flicking his eyes over to them every now and then with a tiny knowing smirk that would have really pissed Tony off had he been in any position to notice it at the time.

Gibbs finally tuned back into the conversation around him, though he never took his eyes off of Tony. He was unsurprised to hear Ducky explaining that though Gibbs comment may have sounded heartless it was just Gibbs. It didn’t mean he didn’t care or that he was trying to dump the responsibility of Tony onto anyone else. It was purely that he trusted his team to do the research for him and tell him what he needed to know in a way he could understand. They all knew Gibbs wasn’t stupid, not in this job, they also knew he would understand and appreciate it more if they told him than reading it out of some book he had no reason to trust. Ducky and Abby would tell him if it was feasible and safe to follow, then the best way to deal with it, and everyone would be happy. 

Once Jim and Blair had accepted this, Ducky asked McGee and Ziva to go back out and find some food. Blair immediately handed them a sheaf of papers and told them to get something from that list for Tony and Jim to eat and drink. Ziva was not impressed with this but McGee was willing to do just about anything to get out of a room where supposed allies randomly attacked each other and Gibbs was still sitting on Tony, right over his crotch. Abby and Ducky both thought this was a wonderful step forward, in the relationship they both thought the two men should have started years before. They often discussed the pair when they met at one or the others house for a meal and drinks, they just couldn’t wait for the pair to stop hiding and get on with it already.

********************* 

*Flight is assumed to be from Seattle to DC, a little artistic license is needed here peeps!

**No, this is not a ‘Super Tony’ fic but I feel justified in thinking Tony would wipe the floor with Jim in these circumstances. Considering he is very new at this his adrenalin is going to be off the scale, add to that he is ‘protecting’ Gibbs and the team and he is on his own territory as well as the age difference and I don’t think Jim would stand a chance.

TNN.

 

Chapter Two.

After McGee and Ziva left again Gibbs decided it was time to sort out the situation to HIS satisfaction, and hopefully the two Sentinels. 

“Ducky, Abbs, get a seat and stay behind us. Ellison, Sandburg, get a seat the other side of the lab and stay in it. DiNozzo, you and I are gonna get up and you are gonna behave. Got it?”

Jim looked as though he might argue but Blair grabbed his arm and led him as far from the others and the door as he could get and remain in the room. Abby and Ducky moved opposite them and found chairs for Tony and Gibbs near them too. Tony looked up at Gibbs and grinned cheekily.

“Sure thing Boss.”

Gibbs shook his head in amused exasperation and decided to ignore him for the moment. He slowly got up, warily watching Tony for any sudden moves. He may look compliant at the moment but that could change in the blink of an eye. Once they were stood he pointed Tony in the direction of the chairs Abby and Ducky had ready for them.

“You are gonna sit there and not move, I am going to get the book from Sandburg and give it to Ducky, understood?”

Tony glared at him balefully for a moment but then nodded. Gibbs sighed and shook his head again as he headed over to Sandburg and picked up the book Blair had put out on the table. Blair smiled at him and he nodded back in acknowledgement and quickly turned back to Tony and ‘their’ side of the room. He gave the book to Ducky as soon as he got there and sat next to Tony, their thighs rubbing together ever so slightly. Ducky and Abby were soon cooing and ahhing over the book and generally ignoring everyone else.

“So, they always gonna be like this or they gonna settle down some time?”

Gibbs looked directly at Blair as he spoke and got a grin in return.

“The only other Sentinel we've met was nuts, had no Guide and was female. I don’t know that these two are gonna try mating, but I doubt it.”

Gibbs gave his own growl at the thought of anyone else touching his Tony and then realised exactly what he had just thought. ‘When the hell did he become my Tony?’ It didn’t take him long to realise it had started as soon as he met the man and cemented when Tony wouldn’t let go of him in autopsy. That aside, they had more immediate concerns. 

"So everything you know comes from one source?"  
"Yes, all first hand knowledge, at least. Everything else is from the book I gave you."  
"Huh."  
"Jethro, this will take a while to go over, maybe you could get the high-lights from Mr Sandburg?"  
"Why did he bug out?"  
"He what?"

Jethro gave Sandburg a look that made him feel like a recalcitrant two year old.

"Lights were on, no one was home."  
"Right! We call it a 'zone out', it happens when a Sentinel concentrates too much on one sense."  
"That’s why touching him got his attention."  
"You were touching me Boss?"  
"Zip it. Lack of sleep through the opp, nine days on the run, when did things get hinky DiNozzo?"  
"Day five. Started with hearing, moved on to touch, clothes were unbearable, stream water was worse at one point. Heard the dogs, then your voice, heartbeat, everything else went away. Woke up here when Bozo strutted in."  
"Quit it, DiNozzo!"  
"Sorry Boss."

Though he sounded anything but Gibbs just glared at him for a moment before looking back to Blair. 

"What else?"  
"How do you mean? There's years worth of study in the book alone, this is not something you can pick up and just run with!"  
"What is gonna change on the job? He gonna 'zone' every five minutes?"  
"Well, he shouldn’t if you stay with him, though you should be aware that he will now pick up evidence you would have never found before."

Gibbs snorted, Tony grinned and Ducky and Abby both chuckled. Blair did not look amused.

"Ya know, this isn't a joke! This is a mans life and livelihood I'm talking about here! Just finding justification of the evidence Jim has found on cases has been a nightmare! We eventually had to tell the Captain because we couldn’t hide it!"  
"Why hide it?"  
"Because you can't tell anyone about Sentinels! Man you people are not getting this at all!"

Blair stood up and began to step forward in his usual exuberance at getting his point across. These people weren't taking this nearly seriously enough and he had to make them understand. DiNozzo didn’t like the perceived threat in his move, and Jim didn’t like the very obvious threat in DiNozzo's growl. Gibbs then growled quite convincingly at them all and surprisingly enough, both Sentinel's backed down.

"We are fully aware that this is not a joke. I don’t take anything more seriously than a threat to one of my people! The amusing part was DiNozzo finding 'impossible' evidence, he's been doing that since he joined NCIS six years ago. You don’t know us, you don’t know how we work. I wont tell you how to do your job, you don’t tell me how to do mine. Now you can tell me how to work with this or you can leave."  
"Hey, chill man! We're all learning here!"

Ellison decided it was time to join in the conversation.

"Gibbs, you look out for your people, I admire that in a leader, I do the same, so does my Captain. It's the way it should be. Blair isn't used to military, he's still getting used to the force. Most of what you need to know is in the book we copied for you or the paper Blair wrote that we gave you earlier. We can only speculate that each Sentinel and Guide pair is unique, so look it all over and go with what feels right, what works for you. All I can recommend is that we leave you to settle into this for a while then get together and go over the finer points at a later date. There is no point in going into everything now, no Chief, don’t argue, you need to get a feel for it first. There is no teacher like…"  
"Experience."

Gibbs broke in, grinning at Ellison. This was a man he could get to like, he was military, down to Earth, and plain spoken. Ellison nodded and grinned back before continuing. 

"I'm due some time off, and I dare say you have a few days due?"

Gibbs just grinned back at him, they both knew they each had more than a few days leave on the books.

"So, I think a few weeks should give you enough time. How about we all book a week or two off starting in one month, then we can meet somewhere neutral and get down to the finer points."

Gibbs looked over to Tony, who just nodded, then back to Ellison.

"Agreed. One month from Friday."  
"Who's gonna tell Madam Director? You know she'll create."  
"Leave her to me DiNozzo. We can book somewhere near Buffalo Lake, North Dakota. It's about half way and reasonably remote."  
"Right, then the only thing you really need to know right now is how to dial down your senses."  
"Jim! There are like a million things they need to know!"  
"Chief, they've worked together for years, they know each other! Sounds like DiNozzo's always had good senses, they need time to get used to the idea more than anything else, this isn't like you and me at the beginning Chief. Now are you gonna tell him about the dials or shall I?"  
"Hell no man! I'll do it! Man, years of research and you boil it down to the dials! Man!"

Gibbs looked at Tony and they shared a grin, Jim was definitely a man they could get used to having around, he spoke their language, though Blair would take some getting used to.

"Right, Tony, do you have a favourite stereo or something?"  
"Do I have a favourite stereo? Do I?"  
"DiNozzo."  
"Yes Boss."  
"Right, picture it, you need five dials, one for each sense. Now, you seem fine at the moment, so all of the dials will be at five, or half way, ok?"  
"Yeah."  
"Should I write this down?"

Gibbs head slapped Tony for the stupid tone of voice that had prompted that question and nodded at Blair to carry on.

"Ignore him."

Blair looked to Jim who just nodded, grinning at them. Blair shook his head, they weren't taking this nearly as seriously as he thought they should.

"Right. If you need more of one sense you can turn the dial up, less you turn it down, the concept seems simple but the practice can be difficult. You should practice when you're somewhere quiet, but only with your guide, just in case you zone. If he does zone out, you have to stimulate one or more of his other senses to get him out of it. Jim also uses me as an anchor if he needs to use one sense on high. So if you have to see a long way or really fine detail then you anchor to Gibbs heartbeat, then you're less likely to zone."  
"Gottcha! Dial per sense, keep 'em level. Don’t practice without Gibbs, don’t use only one, and anchor."

Blair nodded, a little surprised at the professional and rapid cover of what he had said. It was the first time he had heard the man sound anything but defensive or joking. Then he remembered that Tony was in fact a professional law enforcement officer working for the Navy.

Gibbs watched the conversations going on around him for a while, then decided he needed the head. As he walked to the lift it occurred to him that he had a shadow, Tony was at his shoulder so often that it took a while to click that he didn’t need to be on this occasion. 

"Suddenly developed separation anxiety too DiNozzo?"

He asked shortly, Tony grinned at him sheepishly.

"No Boss."

Gibbs nodded and went on his way. Blair watched the exchange with no little worry, he still didn’t think Gibbs appreciated the full extent of the possible pit falls of Tony being a Sentinel. His mind had already put together a (he thought) plausible scenario to get Tony away from him, he just hadn't figured out how to find a suitable Guide for him. He resolved, again, to watch them both carefully. Blair came to stand near Abby and quietly asked her.

"Is Gibbs always like this?"  
"Nope! He's being nice cause we need your help."  
"This is nice?"  
"Oh yeah! And Tony's behaving too!"  
"Man, I'm glad I get to go home soon!"

Abby just laughed at him.

Tony tried to tune back in to the conversation around him but he already missed Gibbs, which made him feel really pathetic. He realised that he was actually still listening to Gibbs steps as he walked away. Once he was concentrating on the sound he realised he could hear his heart beat too, he grinned and continued listening as Gibbs reached the bathroom and took care of business, Tony was surprised it didn’t bother him. Blair, still concentrating on Tony, saw the small grin and realised what he must be doing, it just took a moment too long to register 'exactly' what he was doing.

"Damn!"

Jim looked to his Guide, then to Tony and realised the new Sentinel had zoned. Blair moved straight to Tony's side while the others watched on. Ducky and Abby had realised what was happening. Blair gently touched Tony's arm and started talking to him gently, trying to pull him back but with no luck. 

Gibbs walked back to the lab still considering the situation, trying to decide if it was safe for Tony to be out in the field. He knew his even better senses would be a bonus, Blair had called Jim a walking crime lab, but he also knew how dangerous it could be. When he walked back into Abby's lab he saw Blair touching Tony and almost growled, then he realised what was going on. It was obvious Tony would have zoned on either sight or sound, and as he had been out of the room he guessed sound. He walked straight up to Tony and 'Gibbs Slapped' him round the head.

"Sorry Boss!"  
"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING????"

Tony and Blair spoke at the same time, Tony looking sheepish again and Blair glaring slow and painful death at Gibbs. Gibbs glanced at Blair with an insulting level of 'couldn’t give a shit'.

"Worked, didn’t it?"

Jim had to fight down his laughter at that, it wouldn’t do to let Blair see his amusement as the man seemed to have lost his sense of humour recently. It looked like the Sentinels had started tolerating each other just in time for the Guides to start in at each others throats. Ducky decided to head them off before they could really start.

"Gentlemen. Do you have any more information for us or have we got everything?"

Blair glared at Gibbs for a moment more until Jim elbowed him in the side.

"You have everything we do, the rest is as individual as the Sentinel."  
"Right you are then, what say we call it a night? It's been a long day for everyone, we all need some rest. Abby has organised rooms for you here on base, you can stay for as long as you wish. I know Abigail and I would love to talk to you both."  
"Sounds good Ducky, thank you, do you want to meet back here?"  
"That would be wonderful my dear boy, we can talk as we work, if anything comes in, maybe you could stay here with Abigail and Blair could join me while I work, I doubt you would like Autopsy any more than Tony ever has."

Jim and Ducky made their arrangements and Jim eventually had to drag Blair out of the lab, following Tim and Ziva to their room for the night. Jim knew he would be getting ranted at once they were alone, he was just surprised he managed to contain his self until they were.

"I can't believe that man! Doesn’t he realise what damage it could cause a new Sentinel, how vulnerable Tony is right now? Tony could end up insane or going off-line because of him!"

Jim knew he could go on all night if left unchecked so he decided to stop him as soon as possible.

"Chief! Chill out ok? Gibbs is looking out for Tony the best way he knows how. He's not like you. He's a marine, of course he comes across as a hard-ass, he is! That doesn’t mean he doesn’t care about his team, especially Tony. I know you can't see everything I do, but you have to trust me on this one, Gibbs is exactly what Tony needs. If you can't trust me, at least trust your mystic shit, if Gibbs is Tony's Guide, which he obviously is, then their must be a reason."

Jim almost laughed at the indignant look on Blair's face but thought better of it.

"You may not see it yet Chief, but it is for the best."

Blair didn’t look convinced but at least he was thinking.

******************* 

Gibbs looked around at the rest of his team after Jim and Blair had left.

"Ducky, what do I need to know?"  
"You seem to have it under control as always Jethro. You'll just have to keep an eye on Anthony a little more than usual, keep together when you're out of the office, and you Anthony will have to be careful what products you use as well as your food and drink. Other than that, you'll have to wait and see, take things as they come."

Gibbs nodded and looked to Abby.

"Abs?"  
"What he said Boss-man."  
"Right, go home, sleep, be back here tomorrow. DiNozzo, you're with me. Duck, tell the Director we'll be back on Monday, we both have enough time owing. We'll see you then. DiNozzo, with me."

Gibbs walked out of the lab, heading to the garage and home, Tony following. 

"What now Boss?"  
"We go home and start dealing with this."

Tony's confused, wary expression was adorable and Gibbs had his usual struggle to not react to it.

"But, how can we deal with it if you're sending me home?"  
"Never said your home DiNozzo, said with me and meant it!"

With that he turned away before he did or said something stupid and continued to the garage. Once they reached the cars Tony automatically headed for his own.

"Leave it."  
"But Boss!"

Tony was torn between his instinct to obey Gibbs and his need for the slither of independence having his own car would give him. The fleeting thought that he 'could' leave whenever he wanted to with his car. Gibbs stopped and stared at him with one foot in the car with a brow raised. Tony sighed, got his go bag out of his boot giving his car one last longing look, then got in Gibbs car. Tony knew the drive to Gibbs house took twenty minutes but it seemed so much longer in the deafening silence. When they finally arrived Tony silently followed Gibbs into the house. Gibbs, unsurprisingly, went straight to the coffee machine and turned it on, having prepped it that morning before leaving as usual. It was so typically 'Gibbs' that Tony had to grin. Gibbs turned around to see him stood in the doorway, holding his go bag with a stupid grin on his face and couldn’t help smiling back.

"Go put that in your room. I'll get the extra blankets."

Tony rolled his eyes.

"Yes Dad!"

And left as ordered, wondering just how awkward the evening was going to be. He stowed his things in the room and sat on the bed to wait for Gibbs and the blankets. It was a cold night so though the bed was made he knew he would need the extra warmth. He had wondered every time he stayed here if the man always had the bed made up, or some 'Gibbsian' 6th sense told him when it would be needed. As he sat thinking of Gibbs he realised he could smell him in the room. He always liked the smell of Gibbs, clean and musky with a hint of sawdust. One of the things he liked most about Gibbs was the fact that, even the morning after a bad case when he knew he had had a drink the night before, he never smelt of alcohol. He could never forget the stench of alcohol on his father on a drunken binge, when he did his best to fade into the woodwork, or suffered the consequences. The smell of Gibbs grew stronger and without conscious thought he zoned in on it and the comfort it gave him, his mind flying back to Abby's lab and Gibbs pinning him to the floor, and taking advantage of the effect it had on him. 

Gibbs collected the extra blankets and carried them to the spare room. Tony was sat on the bed staring into space, Gibbs sighed, he had zoned again.

"We gotta get a handle on this zoning crap Tony."

He sighed, shock his head and thought about it. It probably wasn't sight, unless he was missing something particularly interesting about that spot on the wall, it probably wasn’t touch as his hands were on his lap. 'Well, it worked last time' he thought and slapped Tony round the head, though not too hard, if this carried on he'd end up with brain damage before long. 

"Yes Boss!"

Tony jumped up, almost tripping over his own feet he moved so fast.

"We gotta deal with this crap DiNozzo, to dangerous in the field."  
"Gonna hold my hand Boss?"

Tony asked with a cheeky grin before sobering. 

"I know, I just don’t know how. I don’t even realise it's happening until you slap me out of it."  
"Then that's the first thing isn't it? Figure out what triggers it and why, then how to avoid it."

Tony stared at his feet, the picture of abject misery at the seeming impossibility of it all. Then he nearly fell off the bed in shock when Gibbs started petting his hair. Gibbs grinned as Tony jumped then leant in to his hand as he stood there petting him. It was so typically 'Tony'. As he thought about the problem and possible solutions he played with Tony's hair, unconsciously moving down the back of his head to his nape, the short hair there was soft and downy like a pure breed Siamese kitten. And Tony almost purred like one too! Gibbs stopped thinking about the problem of zoning and started concentrating on Tony his self. Tony's eyes were closed, head slightly back and to the side, rubbing against Gibbs thigh while he gave a low rumbling purr! It really was an honest to god purr! Tony should not be able to make that sound, not least of all because it was going straight to Gibbs crotch. The purring was interrupted by a sniff, then another and another as Tony's head slowly and subconsciously moved closer to the source of the delicious smell of arousal. Just as Tony was about to bury his nose in his crotch, Gibbs chuckled. 

"DiNozzo! Other room, bed, now!"

Tony shook his self aware and frowned at him.

"Boss?"

Gibbs raised his brow at him.

"Can't leave you for two minutes without you going gaga on me. Now move."

Tony automatically moved, even while he was trying to figure out what was going on. Gibbs might just be right, with all the different sights and sounds of Gibbs in the house, he was spoilt for choice with reasons to zone, and it meant sleeping in Gibbs bed. Gibbs laughed as Tony started bouncing towards his room at a very flattering speed. When he reached the door Tony was already under the covers, back to the centre of the bed, eyes closed tight. Gibbs grinned at him as he slipped his clothes off and got into the bed, he lay out on his back and closed his eyes. Tony fidgeted for a while till Gibbs sighed and told him firmly to go to sleep. Tony stilled, then he relaxed and finally went to sleep, Gibbs soon following.

Gibbs woke a few hours later to Tony whimpering, shifting around in the bed, obviously agitated. He reached out and put his hand on his shoulder, smiling as he settled. When he was quiet Gibbs lifted his hand and settled his self back down, but stopped when Tony yelped his name started shifting in his sleep again. He sighed and shook his head in surrender, then shifted closer to Tony, putting an arm around his waist to pull him close. He lay still for a while as Tony settled, then closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

*************** 

Tony knew he was dreaming, he had to be, this wasn’t how it had happened, but it felt too real. The fear flooded him as he ran and he could feel them getting closer and closer, herding him into a trap. He knew what these men were capable of, he had seen the reports, the pictures of those they had caught, he couldn’t, wouldn’t, let that happen to him. He was a trained federal agent, not a victim, but he felt like prey, small and weak and powerless. He could feel the trap moving in on him, tightening, constricting, choking him! He couldn’t run, he was being smothered, he couldn’t move, couldn’t protect his self, couldn’t get to Gibbs, he wanted Gibbs, needed him, would give anything for Gibbs to be there right now to save him, protect him, hold him. Then he was free! He could hear Gibbs, feel him, smell him, feel his hand on his shoulder. Gibbs was there and that was all that mattered. He calmed, he felt safe, then the touch was gone. He yelled for Gibbs, if only he would come back he could stop panicking, get his control back, stop being a victim. Then Gibbs was back, he could feel him everywhere, he was held tight, safe, secure, surrounded by Gibbs. He waited for a while, afraid he would leave again, and when he didn’t he let the last of his tension go and fell into the peace that was Gibbs presence. 

******************* 

Tony knew he was waking up but he didn’t want to. He was warm and safe and peaceful. He remembered the terror of the night and shuddered, feeling the arm around his waist tighten reassuringly. He automatically moved his hand to the arm and petted it in thanks, snuggling back into the warm solid body behind him. Then he froze. That body was Gibbs. There was no room for doubt, it was definitely Gibbs. Now all he had to do was get out of this alive. He heard a chuckle behind him and felt the deep rumble of the chest he was snuggled into, and realised everything was fine. If Gibbs was there and awake it was by choice, probably because of the nightmare, and he had chosen to stay. He patted Gibbs arm again and tried to shift towards the edge of the bed. Gibbs arm tightened and he grunted discontentedly. Tony grinned, he couldn’t help it, he knew he would be missed! And by Gibbs of all people! 

"Need the head."

Tony said quietly as he continued to shuffle out of the bed. Gibbs reluctantly let go of him and watched as he went straight to the bathroom. As soon as he was finished, Tony went straight back to the bed and snuggled back into Gibbs. He couldn’t help grinning again and moving even further back as Gibbs put his arm round his waist again and pulled him in. He felt Gibbs shift behind him and sigh.

"We getting up now Boss?"

Gibbs grunted in a vague manner so he stayed where he was, if Gibbs was happy enough he wasn’t going to move. He knew they would have to get up eventually and Gibbs was shifting again, so he figured he would make the most of it by shifting back a little further. It absently crossed his mind that Gibbs was not a man to fidget, he could sit for hours on a stake-out without so much as a twitch, so why squirm now? Tony shifted again, trying to get as close to Gibbs as possible and Gibbs groaned, clamping down on his hip with the hand that had been on Tony's stomach. At that point Tony realised Gibbs had been trying to keep their lower bodies apart, and failing miserably because of Tony's wriggling. Tony grinned fit to split his face and cheekily asked.

"Getting up now Boss?"  
"Yes!"

Was the terse reply as Gibbs rolled away from him and out of the bed, heading straight to the bathroom. Tony couldn't help laughing as he watched Gibbs very adequate six stride into the bathroom, not taking his eyes off it until the bathroom door closed. Once he had control of his laughter he jumped out of bed and quickly dressed, it was already 08:15 and he was surprised Gibbs hadn't gotten them up earlier. He must have been very happy where he was! Tony snickered to his self at the thought and made his way down to the kitchen. He put the coffee machine on and wondered if Gibbs would want breakfast, and if so, what? He wondered how long Gibbs would be in the shower, and what he looked like 'in' the shower? As he thought about it he realised he could hear Gibbs moving about in the shower clearly, his breathing, his heart beat, and he zoned. Gibbs didn’t hang about in the shower, he never did. He did consider making it a cold one to start with but knowing Tony would hear his gasp as it hit him he decided against it. He hadn't missed Tony's laughter as he left the room and had considered going back and head slapping him, but again decided against it. The temptation to 'stay and play' would have been too great and he was well aware they needed to talk before anything else happened. As he was getting dressed he got a sinking feeling in his gut, he moved downstairs quickly and went straight to the kitchen.

"Ah hell!"

He was getting really sick of this zoning crap. He walked up to Tony and head-slapped him.

"DiNozzo!"  
"Yes Boss!"  
"At least you snap out of it quick enough most of the time."  
"Sorry Boss."  
"Not your fault Tony. We will get this fixed though, and damn quick, 'cause you're off active duty until we do."  
"Boss! You can't do that to me! You know I can do my job! Who else is gonna watch your six?"

Gibbs glared at him.

"You think you're gonna be any help if you zone out in a showdown? This is a liability DiNozzo, and you know it. You can't cover me if you're unresponsive. Who the hell is gonna cover my six while I cover yours!?!"

Tony wanted to argue, he wanted to curl up in a ball and scream in frustration and fear actually, he wanted this sorted or gone and didn’t much care which as long as it was soon. 

"So what the hell do I do?"  
"We figure it out. Put that mind of yours to use Tony, what were you doing just now before you zoned?"  
"I put the coffee on, was wondering if you wanted breakfast, heard you in the shower, then I kind of centred on your heartbeat, then you slapped me."  
"And the time before that?"  
"I was sat on the bed, I could smell you in the room, as it got stronger I got lost."  
"What about the time in the lab, I came back from the head and you were gone."  
"I was listening to your footsteps. I could hear you right to the head and back, your heartbeat again."  
"I'm seeing a pattern here."

Gibbs was grinning at Tony as he fidgeted, feeling ridiculously shy right about then. Gibbs took pity on him.

"So you have to learn to pay a little less attention to me, and I never thought I'd say that!"

Gibbs chuckled, grinning at Tony. Tony grinned back, he couldn’t help it. 

"So what happened the first time, when we found you?"  
"Pretty much the same, I'd been hiding under the outcropping for days, thinking I was going mad, seeing things, hearing, my clothes were so itchy I had to strip off, couldn’t stomach anything for a couple of days, not even water. Then I heard dogs, I was getting ready to run when I heard you. Once I heard your voice I zeroed in on your heartbeat, and got lost. Then I could smell you too. Next thing I know, I'm on Abby's futon with you and I can smell a threat. Don’t ask me why it was a threat, but I knew it was. You know the rest."

Gibbs grinned again, he knew the rest all right. Tony grinned back.

"That was dirty ball!"  
"Worked though!"  
"Worked all right, a bit too well, didn’t think I'd be getting off the floor any time soon."  
"Me either. So, you think you can control your self?"  
"Depends, do I have to?"

Gibbs looked at him carefully for a long while, despite his earlier playfulness Tony was being perfectly serious, so he gave it serious thought. He had made rule twelve for good reason, work place romance could get very messy, but he had known Tony for a long time. He knew they were both exceptional undercover agents and capable of putting personal feelings aside to do the job. He knew, deep in his gut, that it wouldn’t affect their work, even if it all went to hell personally, they were both too professional for any less. He also thought it was highly unlikely it would go to hell, they knew each other too well for any false expectations, and the job wasn’t going to come between them like with his ex-wives. He knew Tony's reputation as a ladies man, and knew most of it was made up or played up. He also knew Tony was serious or he wouldn’t have asked. He considered all of these things, and he considered how he felt about Tony, and he thought, what the hell? Why shouldn’t he do something for his self for a change? And why shouldn’t Tony? They had both worked and suffered over the years, they both deserved peace, and a little joy, and if there was one thing Tony was good at, it was being joyful. Gibbs smiled, a slow, genuine smile.

"Not at all."

Tony grinned at him joyously. 

"Good, then I can do this!"

Tony reached out a hand and wrapped it around the back of Gibbs neck, pulling him in for a long and very passionate kiss. He mapped out the inside of Gibbs mouth like he was memorising every square millimetre, Gibbs almost expected to find a flag of ownership in there somewhere when he finally pulled back for air. Tony leant forward, resting their foreheads together while they caught their breath.

"You do not know how long I've wanted to do that!"  
"Since I first saw your eyes, pinning me down in that ally."  
"You too huh? You know, that’s several years we could have been screwing like bunnies."

Gibbs laughed at that.

"Yeah, but it wouldn’t have lasted then, and I have no intention of letting you go now I have you."  
"Probably, and good, 'cause nor do I." 

 

Perfectus.


End file.
